


Valkyrie

by bbbrynhildr



Category: Akatsuki no Yona | Yona of the Dawn
Genre: (kinda), Alternate Universe - Canon Divergence, Bromance, Found Family, Gen, ayaka just learns how to LOve, i’ll add more tags later when i think of them, listen it’s oc centric so if you don’t like that please leave
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-01-06
Updated: 2019-01-06
Packaged: 2019-10-05 03:59:54
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 3,054
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/17317682
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/bbbrynhildr/pseuds/bbbrynhildr
Summary: In the mountains of Kouka, legends of winged people circulate from village to village, town to town.Ayaka is, at sixteen years old, a living legend.After the destruction of her home, her family, and her tribe, Ayaka set off on a journey to find who did it and bring them to justice, and find peace.(And soon, with the help of her new friends.)





	Valkyrie

**Author's Note:**

> hey y’all so uhhh  
> I wrote this fic originally when I was around twelve or thirteen, revisited it,  
> and decided I wanted to redo it all!!!  
> So, don’t really expect a lot of...quality. And if you followed me here from Wattpad, welcome back! I’ll be updating here from now on oowoo

"Hey, you! Get back here!"  
The shouts and yells of the brutes she had stolen her dinner from just moments before echoed behind Ayaka as she made her escape. Chest heaving, she forced herself to move further, putting more and more distance between her and the bandits.  
She could feel her heart trying to run as fast as she was as she raced between the trees, leaping over roots and rocks and trampling the brush in her wake. The only thing on her mind was finding an open clearing, but how would she even make it there? The deep, deep gash in her shoulder, bleeding profusely, would make her escape even more painful. She would be shocked if she even managed to get there without bleeding out.  
How could she have let this happen? Foolish mistake, her father would have told her. She shoved his voice out of her mind and coughed hard, pressing her hand down tighter on her wound as best as she could, climbing clumsily over a boulder. Every step, every movement of her body was agony for her torn shoulder, and the awkward angle her arm was at to try and stop the bleeding wasn't making the other one feel very nice either. Cursing herself again, she focused on the sudden gap in the trees. She dove through, seeing packed dirt, crushed weeds, and...

Ayaka, lost in thought, had smashed into something very soft, making her topple over on impact, landing hard on her back in a plume of dirt. She cried out as she landed on her injury, a bone-rattling shudder passing through her. This wasn't good...oh, gods. She was done for. Dazed from loss of blood and her head hitting the ground, she lifted her head just as a shadow was cast over her. The figure's features were invisible, their back to the sun.  
"What in the-" she used her hand to block the sun from her eyes, squinting feebly, though it didn't do much. Her vision was too hazy. A shout not far from them made Ayaka choke, and try to scramble to her feet, rolling over and skittering off down the path. Ayaka's honey-colored eyes were wide with fear as she wobbled down the path, turning slightly to look momentarily at the figure. "Sorry," she mumbled through clenched teeth, breaking into a staggering run.

"Hey! Wait!" Ayaka didn't turn at the sound of someone shouting. But there was no point in running—she barely made it a few steps away before she collapsed in a heap, blood pooling around her. Her scarlet stained cloak fluttered aside, revealing the depth of her injury, stretched across her shoulder blade. Her mind raced with panicked thoughts until she lost consciousness, the last thing she heard was more shouts and footsteps.  
Had she been caught?

~

Ayaka's ears rang. That was the only thing she could hear as her eyes opened. She immediately regretted it- Her head was pounding. She was alarmed to see, as she finally regained her vision, purplish-black wings with blood crusted along the feathers spread out on either side of her. She made a face at the heavy, sticky feeling of half-dried blood coating the innermost feathers, shifting painfully. They ached from being flat out for so long, and she tried to shift them, wincing at how her back ached sharply at the movement. How....how did they reappear? Unless... She lifted a heavy arm to her collarbone, a shot of adrenaline flowing through her as she realized her amulet was nowhere to be found. No! Where had it gone? She tried turning her head, but an ache in her neck stopped her.

"Yoon, how is she?" she heard a woman's voice inquire. Ayaka lifted her head ever so slightly, ignoring the screaming ache, to squint at the entrance of the tent, where she could see a few vaguely person-shaped shadows outside. 

"I told you, Yona, I don't know for sure yet.  I've only just gotten to treat her wound. She nearly bled out!" this voice sounded rather irritated.

"She looks exhausted. Who knows how long those men had been chasing her." remarked a deeper male voice.

"Zeno wonders how she got into that situation in the first place,"

She tried to sit up. Where is she? Who are these people?  
"Alright, all of you, shoo. I'm going to go check on her."

She heard rustling and footsteps, and a grumbling voice. Chest tightening from the effort of keeping her head up so long, she blinked again and coughed, letting it drop again. She heard the tent flap move, and quiet footsteps. A somewhat hazy face appeared, making her blink again. He- upon closer inspection, she decided he was male- had deep, dark circles under his bright blue eyes, like he had been up several nights with barely any sleep. His hair looked soft and was a lovely color. She was vaguely reminded of the dried apricots she would sometimes be given as treats as a child. "Ah, you're awake," he said, reaching out to put a hand on her forehead and check her temperature. She struggled to recollect what could have possibly happened, blinking at the boy and trying to find words. His hand was warm.

After several moments of staring at each other in silence, everything came rushing back to her. She gasped and tried to sit up swiftly, frantic, but a sudden pull in her shoulder made her stop, and groan softly. The boy grasped her waist, making her sit up much slower. "Relax. You've lost a lot of blood, and that wound in your shoulder is pretty deep."  
Her heart still raced like a rabbit's, however, and she glanced around in a weak attempt at making sense of her situation. She managed to take a deep breath to calm herself and shut her eyes. The tent flap moved again, and Ayaka paused, blinking at the girl that joined them. She had remarkably red, short-cropped hair, and soft purple eyes that stared back at her with a somewhat wide gaze. A soft smile graced her lips, soothing Ayaka somewhat. The boy glanced at her and sighed. "Yona, I thought I told you to shoo."  
"I wanted to see how she is doing, Yoon." the woman responded, her voice sweet, but firm.

They were all silent, Ayaka blinking owlishly at the two of them. Finally, she managed to croak, "Who.....who are you?"  
The young woman smiled as she knelt down on Ayaka's other side. "My name is Yona." she nodded, "It's nice to meet you."  
The boy huffed. "And I'm Yoon. I just saved your life, so some thanks would be appreciated!"  
Ayaka was rather bemused but offered a weak smile and a breathy chuckle. "Er....thank you. My name.....is Ayaka," she whispered, giving them both a nod, or at least an attempt. Yoon then held out a flask of water to her, which she accepted gratefully, gulping down the cool liquid. "Now....tell me, what happened? I...can't remember a thing..." she said, coughing a bit after lowering her drink from her lips.

"Well," Yona began, "after you collided with Yoon on the path three days ago-"  
"Th...three days?!"  
"Mhmm. You were unconscious for some time...."  
Ayaka groaned a bit, rubbing her forehead.  
"...Anyway, after you collided with him and passed out, we took you back to our camp, where Yoon took care of your wounds."  
"What of the men chasing me?" Ayaka asked, frowning.  
"Oh, our friends....took care of them. You're safe, don't worry." she smiled.  
Ayaka sighed deeply, rubbing her eyes. "I owe you a great debt...you saved my life. Thank you very much," she said again with a weak smile.

"Now, would you mind....answering a few questions?" Yona asked.  
"Like why you have wings, for starters. It scared me half to death when I took that necklace off you, then flailed almost every time I touched them while you were unconscious." Yoon stated dryly, frowning at her.  
"Ah, that...." she smiled sheepishly, rubbing her neck. Her feathers ruffled absently, the dried blood making them stick together. "Er....well, you see....it's very difficult to explain. But I am one of few." she nodded.  
Yoon sighed. "I suppose we can discuss it in the morning. Lie back down, and go to sleep." he commanded.

Ayaka smiled softly at them both, and laid down again, shutting her eyes. She allowed sleep to take her as Yoon and Yona's quiet voices lulled her.

That morning, Ayaka opened her eyes to a raging headache. With a soft groan, she slowly sat up, and looked around. Her left arm was wrapped safely in a sling, ensuring she wouldn't move it and harm her shoulder. Yoon and Yona were nowhere to be seen, though she could smell smoke, and heard voices just outside the tent. She managed to make it to her hand and knees at a snail's pace, grasping for her bag and rummaging through. To her luck, Yoon was kind enough to place the amulet inside. A triumphant smile came to her lips as she slipped it over her head, shifting a bit and glancing back to be sure her wings had retracted completely before attempting to push herself to her feet. She almost took the whole tent down with her as she wobbled, and grumbling softly, she looked down at herself. She was still in her clothes from three days ago, though her plain, cream-colored shirt and brown pants had been neatly mended and cleaned of any blood, making her smile. She spotted her cloak in a heap the corner and leaned down. She pulled the oversized cloak around her shoulders and let the forest green fabric fall over her, covering her body fully.

Carefully ducking out of the tent, she looked around, squinting in the bright light around her. Before her was a recently built fire, roaring away with something cooking over it. Seven people sat around the fire, including Yona and Yoon. They all turned to look over at her- none of them looked particularly hostile, which was probably good.  
"Pardon me..." she said quietly, making them all turn to look at her. She almost went back into the tent.  
"Oh, you're awake!" Yona said. "Come here and sit, and let everyone introduce themselves to you..." she patted the spot beside her. Ayaka reluctantly crept over and slowly sat down beside her, looking warily at the men around her.  
"It's...nice to meet you. My name is Ayaka. Thank you for saving me." she smiled, folding her hands in her lap. "What are your names?"

"Zeno, little miss!" chirped a cheerful, yellow-haired man, smiling brightly.  
"Jae-ha." a man with long green hair bowed slightly to her. "It's a pleasure, miss Ayaka."

"Kija." said the pale man on the other side of the fire, giving her a polite nod.

"Hak." the dark-haired man said bluntly, his eyes on the fire.

"And that's Sin-ah." Yona said, gesturing to the man with the horned mask. "He's not very fond of speaking."  
A tiny squirrel popped up onto Shin-ah's shoulder and squeaked, earning a soft smile from Ayaka. "Oh, and that's Ao." Yona added, gesturing to the squirrel.

Ayaka nodded slowly as she went over their names in her head. What an odd bunch! "Alright....that probably won't be too hard to remember." she smiled. "So, who are you people anyway? Travelers?" she said, idly pulling all her hair over one shoulder, the purple-tinted black strands a similar color to her feathers. It was impossibly long, reaching halfway down her thighs, and she wasn't fond of letting it hang loose...but she was in no condition to braid it. It would have to wait. Her eyes soon fell on a long polearm resting on the ground behind Hak, the blade safely covered by a cloth.  
"Heavily armed travelers..." she added dryly. That man in particular intimidated her the most. She would be wary of him...

"We're something like that," Hak said, crossing his arms. "We're....not very normal travelers."  
"Well, I can see that. For one thing, he has claws." she gestured to Kija, who jumped, and hid his arm behind his back. Ayaka giggled. "Don't try and hide it, I've already seen it."  
"Th-that's-"  
"Don't worry about it, really. I mean, I'm the one with wings here, right?" she grinned and raised an eyebrow, tapping her amulet.  
Jae-ha spoke up then. "Well, I assume you have heard of....the four dragons of legend, no?"  
Ayaka blinked at him. "....Yeah, why?"  
There was an awkward pause.  
"...That's us."  
"But there's way more than four of you here," she said dryly, a small grin on her face. "...I'm just teasing." she shook her head. A collective sigh came from the group.  
"Well, where are you from, then?"

Ayaka's face grew more serious then. "I am...was, a member of the late Northern Toriko tribe of Kouka. We....were very detached from the rest of the world."  
"You...you're...but that's a tengu tribe! A legendary, fictional one!" Yoon said, his brow furrowing.  
"Well, I'm right here, aren't I?" Ayaka giggled. "We...are a reclusive sort. We had to keep ourselves safe somehow. So....we kept to ourselves. The few that managed to reach us were rarely taken seriously once they returned. Thus, the legends."  
There was a dumbfounded silence as they stared at her. ".....If you're so secretive, then why are you telling us all this?"  
Ayaka tilted her head. "Isn't it obvious? You're like me!" she grinned, her cloak fluttering a bit. She coughed and squeezed the amulet, her cloak settling again. She glanced around at them. "So, tell me....how exactly are you the four dragons of legend?"

After quite a lengthy explanation and plenty of bickering, the tale of the dragons had been told, Ayaka smiling softly. "Fascinating....so you are all essentially demigods?"  
"Yes, I suppose..." Jae-ha shrugged. "I must ask, Ayaka. If you are a tengu...then shouldn't you be able to conceal your wings at will? What do you have that for?" he asked, nodding at her amulet.  
"Huh....well, it's a long story..." before she could begin, she stiffened and glancing around. Her new companions were also on guard immediately. Hak's hand twitched, reaching back and grasping his naginata. Slowly, they all stood, as Yoon tugged on Yona's sleeve, drawing her away. Ayaka's free hand went to her waist....and she cursed quietly, looking around. "My sword...!" she hissed. But it was too late- rustling in the brush soon resonated through the clearing. In the blink of an eye, they were surrounded.

"Bandits?" she heard Hak growl, making her sigh.  
"There are a lot around here, I suppose."  
Ayaka tugged her amulet off and tucked it into her pocket. Her wings stretched and fluffed themselves out, making Ayaka wince as her shoulder ached. She let her cloak settle between the wings, both of them longer than she was tall. They would have to be her weapons for now, black feathers gleaming in the sun with a purplish sheen. There was still blood coating a few feathers, making her frown. She really needed a bath.

The men surrounding them had barely any time to react, before they struck, making quick work of their opponents. Ayaka used her wings to deliver hits far more powerful than the regular punch- batting and bludgeoning her foes with acrobatic twirls and leaps, sprinkling in little kicks and punches of her own. She tried to take extra care in not opening her wound, but in the heat of her scuffle, she couldn't really worry about it. Checking up on the others, she was pleasantly surprised (but also a little disappointed, she wanted to be helpful) to see they had also taken care of those that had converged on them rather quickly.  
Ayaka sighed quietly as she turned to face the others fully, stretching a bit. She frowned as she felt something sticky on her back, but merely sighed and let her wings close as she strolled over, tugging her amulet back on.  
"That was quick. You are just as capable as Yoon and Yona made you out to be." she grinned, putting a hand on her hip.  
"You doubted us? Even after we told you what we were?" Kija asked.  
"No, I'm not saying that." she chuckled softly, shaking her head. "I wanted to see for myself."

~

Once the bandits had been gotten rid of, and they were taking down their camp to begin moving once again, Ayaka gathered her things in the tent to prepare to depart on her own journey.  
Kneeling on the ground beside her bag, she slowly pulled out two plain rings- one was on a chain, which she slipped around her neck and tucked under her shirt, hidden away. She held the other ring in her palm in silence for a few moments, staring at it before carefully sliding it onto her finger. She picked up her bag and slung it over her good shoulder, stepping out of the tent.  
"Yona!" she called, and upon seeing her seated beside Yoon, walked over. She bowed. "I still owe you all a heavy debt. Let me come with you so that someday I may be able to repay you," she said quietly. Yona blinked at her, then smiled and stood, shaking her head.  
"You really don't..."  
"B-but....it's true! I must repay you, somehow. A life for a life. In my tribe....debts must always be repaid. Always." she said seriously.  
"Well....." she tilted her head. "We could always use the help..."  
Yoon huffed behind her, grumbling, "Another mouth to feed?"  
"If it bothers you, I'll be willing to find my own food." Ayaka chuckled.  
"No, no, it's fine..." he sighed. She liked him. Kinda grumpy...but he seemed to mean well.

"....I don't trust her much, Princess, but if you believe she can help....I'll be willing to tolerate her." Hak suddenly added from behind Ayaka, making her squeak and jump. When the hell did he get there?  
"I do," Yona said once Ayaka had calmed, nodding, then turned to her. "Well, Ayaka, I accept your offer."  
Ayaka beamed at her. She took Yona's hand and squeezed it gently, declaring,  
"I won't let you down!"

**Author's Note:**

> Thank you very much for reading. If you liked it, please god comment or something because i need validation thanks i love you bye


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